Power operated closure mechanism



Oct. 7, 1969 Filed Dec. 26. 1967 W. N. FORBES POWER OPERATED CLOSURE MECHANISM 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 MfENTOR, WlLLIAM N. FORBES AT TORN EYS Oct. 7, 1969 w. N. FORBES POWER OPERATED CLOSURE MECHANISM 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 26. 1967 United States Patent 3,470,652 POWER OPERATED CLOSURE MECHANISM William N. Forbes, Southington, Conn., assignor to The Stanley Works, New Britain, C0nn., a corporation of Connecticut Filed Dec. 26, 1967, Ser. No. 693,197 Int. Cl. E05f /20, 15/06 US. C]. 49-22 10 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A power operated fail-safe closure mechanism for fire doors includes a pneumatic operator, a solenoid actuated shut off valve in the pressurized air line to the operator, a power transmission linkage connecting the operator with the fire door and mounting an adjustable counterweight assembly constantly acting on the linkage for moving the fire door to a closed emergency position. The system includes heat and smoke detecting devices within both the electrical circuitry for the solenoid and the air line for the pneumatic operator for rendering the pneumatic operator ineffective without disconnecting it from the door. Under automatic opening and closing, the counterweight is constantly used to close the door; thereby, being continually checked for proper operation.

The present invention relates to power operated closure mechanisms and is more particularly directed to a new and improved fail-safe closure mechanism for quickly moving fire doors and the like into an emergency position upon receipt of an emergency signal.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved fail-safe mechanism for power operated closures which is constantly ready to operate upon the closure for rapidly and automatically moving it into an emergency position without the necessity of disconnecting the closure from its power operator.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved mechanism of the type described which is particularly suited for use on fire doors for effecting movement thereof to a fire barrier position not only in the event of fire but also in case of either a power failure or the presence of an activable environmental condition, such as abnormal heat, smoke or the like.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved power operated mechanism of the type described which facilitates easy adjustments thereof to compensate for doors of different size and weight and wherein the device employed for closing the fire door is integrated with the operator mechanism as a part of the power transmission linkage thereof.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved electropneumatic closure mechanism for a fire door Which is constantly conditioned for failsafe operation through the exhaust of the operating air pressure from a pneumatic operator without necessitating the use of an auxiliary mechanism for disconnecting the door from the operator.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved electropneumatic closure mechanism for fail-safe fire doors which is provided with few wearing parts and enables the repeated checking of the operating cycle of the door so as to provide increased dependability and reliability of the mechanism without disrupting the constant readiness of the system.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereafter set forth and the scope of the application which will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view, partly broken away, of the power operated closure mechanism of the present invention operatively mounted on a fire door, the figure illustrating the mechanism with the fire door in the closed position; and

FIG. 2 is a schematic and front elevational view, partly broken away, illustrating portions of the pneumatic and electrical circuits associated with the power operator of the closure mechanism.

Referring now to the invention in detail wherein like reference numerals indicate like parts throughout the several figures, there is shown in FIG. 1 a heavy-weight sliding door 10 of the type and construction conventionally employed as a fire door, mounted for movement transversely of a fire wall passageway or opening 12, shown in phantom. The door 10 which is stabilized in the closed position by the heavy-duty edge binders 14 is suspended from an elongated track 16 afiixe-d to the fire wall above the opening 12 by a pair of door supporting trolleys 18 securely attached to the door adjacent the top edge thereof. A pneumatic power operator 20 mounted above the track 16 is suitably connected to the door 10 through a power transmission linkage, generally designated 22, which is effective for translating the short power stroke of the operator 20 into a linear motive component of sufficient length to drive the fire door to a fully open position. An adjustable counterweight assembly 24 afiixed to the power transmission linkage 22 and constantly operating thereon will automatically drive the door 10 in the opposite direction into its closed emergency position without disconnecting the door from the operator when the pneumatic operator is rendered ineffective. This is initiated under emergency conditions by suitable environmental detecting devices associated with the operator and preferably positioned within the vicinity of the operator enclosure 30 or, under normal conditions, by simply deactivating the solenoid operated valve 32 which controls the flow of pressurized air to the operator 20.

The enclosure 30 for the operator is mounted on the fire wall above the track 16 and is provided with a pair of fixed elongated guide rods 34 traversing substantially the entire length of the enclosure on opposite sides of the operator. A slide assembly 36 affixed to the piston rod 38 of the operator and actuated thereby is received on the guide rods 34 for slidable reciprocating movement in a first direction in response to the driving action of the operator 20 and in the opposite direction by the return driving force of the counterweight assembly 24. The slide assembly 36 includes a flat, upstanding, front plate 40 connected to the piston rod 38 and secured through a bottom bracket 42 to a stabilizing rear saddle plate 44 which passes over the top of the power operator 20 and supportably slides along the guide rods 34 on opposite sides of the operator.

The operator enclosure 30 is additionally provided with an end bracket 48 for securing one end of a pivotable door operating lever 50 while a fixed drive rod 52 secured to both the door operating lever 50 and the bottom bracket 42 of the slide assembly 36 drivingly connects the lever 50 to the power operator 20 for transmitting the door driving forces therebetween. The door operating lever 50 is attached to the fire door 10 through an adjustable door rod assembly 54 secured at one end to the door by bracket 56 and pivot socket 58 and at its other end by the fitting 60 which may be adjustably positioned on the door operating lever 50 at an appropriate driving position depending upon the size and weight of the door. The door rod assembly 54 consists of the elongated tubular sleeve 64 carrying the pivot socket 58 on one end thereof and receiving within its opposite end an elongated adjustable rod 66 having a pivot socket 68 on its free end connected to the fitting 60. The rod 66 is adjustably positioned within the sleeve 64 at different positions so that the length of the rod assembly 54 will vary depending upon the size and weight of the door. As indicated in phantom, the adjustable door rod assembly 54 may be affixed at different locations on the fire door, depending upon the particular type of installation desired.

The counterweight assembly 24 for driving the door into a secure closed position is attached at an acute angle to the door operating lever 50 through a Suitable bracket 72. The assembly 24 includes a counterweight armature 74 affixed within the bracket 72 and extending outwardly therefrom in a direction away from the fixed connecting rod 52. A plurality of counterweights 76 which can vary in number and size are axially positioned on the armature 74 and, after adjustment to obtain the optimum counterweight conditions for the size of the door on which the operator must act, are immobilized thereon by the retaining collars 78. It will, of course, be appreciated that the elfect of the counterweight assembly may be varied by adjusting the position at which it is attached to the door operating lever 50 as well as by the number, size and position of the counterweights within the assembly. Accordingly, the assembly 24 may be aflixed on the door operating lever between the adjustable door rod assembly 54 and the fixed drive rod 52 so long as it continues to apply a closing force when so positioned or, in accordance with the preferred embodiment may, as shown, be mounted between the fixed drive rod 52 and the mounting bracket 48 for the door operating lever 50.

Referring now particularly to FIG. 2, the power operator 20 of the closure mechanism consists essentially of a pneumatic cylinder 80 which is connected with a source of pressurized fluid, such as air, through a port 82 at one end of the cylinder. The air pressure entering the cylinder 80 through port 82 acts on and drives the enclosed piston 84 and its connected piston rod 38 to the right as viewed in FIG. 2 causing the slide assembly 36 to travel along the guide rods 34 for driving the fire door into an open position, as indicated hereinbefore. The pressurized air which passes through the solenoid operated valve 32 before reaching the cylinder 80 is generally regulated to a pressure of about 40-80 p.s.i. The valve 32, upon activation of the solenoid, provides communication between the air inlet line 86 and cylinder port 82 permitting fluid flow towards the pneumatic operator for driving the piston 84. Conversely as the solenoid is deactivated, the valve spindle 88 closes the air inlet line 86 and permits the pressurized fluid within the cylinder to escape through the exhaust port 90. Upon release of the air pressure acting on the piston the counterweight 76 automatically drives the piston 84 to the left as viewed in FIG. 2 while moving the door 10 into its closed position. It will, of course, be appreciated that under normal automatic opening and closing of the fire door in response to pedestrian tralfic the operation thereof is constantly checked since in every instance the counterweight is used to close the door. Such operation or special testing may be achieved by means of an activating switch 92 to activate the solenoid valve 32. In this way the full operating cycle of the closure mechanism is continually checked in a simple and effective manner without disrupting or disconnecting any portion of the mechanism. It will also be readily apparent that should a power failure occur resulting in an emergency situation, the valve 32 will act to close the air line inlet 86 causing the door to fail-safe by permitting the counterweight 76 constantly acting on the power transmission linkage 22 to move the door into the closed position.

As illustrated, the electrical circuit associated with the solenoid may be provided with suitable environmental detecting devices responsive to heat or smoke, such as the thermal switches 96 which operate to open the circuit and cause closure of the fire door in much the same manner as that described hereinbefore in connection with switch 92. It is a further advantage of the mechanism of the present invention that environmental detecting devices may also be incorporated in the air lines leading to the operator by including therein exhaust nozzles controlled by heat and smoke detecting devices. FIG. 2 illustrates one embodiment of this type of system wherein the air exhaust nozzle 98 is connected to the air line 100 intermediate the fluid control valve 32 and the power operated cylinder 80. The detecting device conveniently can take the form of a thermally activated sprinkler-type head 102 having a fusable link 104 capable of opening the air line 100 to the atmosphere when the environmental temperature rises above a certain level, e.g., about F. With this arrangement it is generally preferred that the sprinkler head 102 be situated adjacent the fire door 10 below the operator enclosure 30 and preferably include a unit on both sides of the fire wall to provide maximum protection and ensure the eflective fail-safe operation of the fire door. Thus, as will be appreciated, if the electrical system permits the flow of air to continuously pass through the solenoid operated valve despite the fact that an emergency condition exists, the sprinkler head fusable links 104 will readily react to the condition and open the exhaust nozzle 98 to not only exhaust the air being supplied to the power cylinder but also provide for the exhaust of the air within the cylinder so as to permit the counterweights 76 to rapidly and automatically close the fire door. As mentioned hereinbefore this fail-safe operation will occur despite the fact that the door remains connected to the operator and the pressurized air continues to flow past the control valve 32 toward the operator.

As will be appreciated from the foregoing detailed description, the electropneumatic closure mechanism of the present invention provides for the fail-safe operation of a fire door or the like in a rapid and automatic manner without the necessity of disconnecting the door from the pneumatic operator during the emergency closing thereof. Environmental detecting devices are included in both the electrical and pneumatic circuitry of the mechanism to give instant warning of an emergency condition and thereby immediately set into motion the fail-safe closure mechanism. Due to its few moving parts and ready adaptability for testing a complete operating cycle, the mechanism exhibits a long operating life and is automatically checked during its regular opening and closing operation.

As will be apparent to persons skilled in the art, various modifications and adaptations of the structure abovedescribed will become readily apparent without departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A power operated fail-safe closure mechanism for controlling the movement of a closure into and out of a static position comprising a fluid powered closure operator for driving the closure out of said static position, fluid control means for controlling the flow of driving fluid to actuate the operator, at power transmission linkage connected to both the operator and the closure for movement of the closure out of said static condition in response to movement of the fluid powered operator, a closure biasing member interconnected with the closure and the operator for constantly urging the closure into said static position, said power transmission linkage being adjustable with respect to both the closure and biasing member to accommodate closures of different travel and weight and environmental responsive means for rendering the operator ineffective and enabling the biasing member to drive the closure into said static position without disengaging the closure from the operator.

2. The mechanism of claim 1 wherein the environmental responsive means includes a fluid exhaust interpneumatically operated, the fluid control means is an air shutoff valve and the condition responsive means includes a self-opening air exhaust nozzle within the air line between the operator and the shutoff valve for exhausting the air both within the operator and flowing toward the operator.

6. The mechanism of claim 5 wherein the self-opening nozzle includes a thermally responsive nozzle opening devlce.

7. The mechanism of claim 1 wherein the closure is a fire door mounted for movement transversely of a doorway into and out of a closed fire barrier position, the operator is pneumatically operated and connected to the fire door by the power transmission linkage and the biasing member is a counterweight constantly interconnected with both the door and the operator through the power transmission linkage.

8. The mechanism of claim 7 wherein the environmental responsive means includes a thermally activated device for exhausting the air pressure within the operator.

9. A power operated fail-safe closure mechanism for controlling the movement of a traffic responsive closure into and out of a closed position comprising a fluid powered closure operator actuated by trafiic approaching the closure for driving the closure out of said closed position, a power transmission linkage connected to both the operator and the closure for movement of the closure out of said closed condition in response to movement of the fluid powered operator and a separate closure biasing member including a constantly operating counterweight interconnected with the closure and the operator for constantly urging the closure into said closed position without disengaging the closure from the operator, said power transmission linkage being adjustable with respect to both the-closure and counterweight to accommodate closures of different travel and weight.

10. The mechanism of claim 9 wherein the counterweight is adjustably mounted on the linkage for driving the closure into said closed position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 606,640 7/ 1898 Bennik 49-264 1,244,420 10/ 19 17 Carlisle 49-264 X 1,299,718 4/ 1919 Hambay 49-264 X 2,587,863 3/1952 Lambert 49-1 2,316,309 4/ 1943 Blain 49-2 X FOREIGN PATENTS 12,539 8/ 1892 Great Britain.

DAVID J. WI-LLIAMOWSKY, Primary Examiner J. KORL BELL, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 49-5, 21, 360 

